Election 2015: Day at-a-glance
- Published
In the run-up to the general election on 7 May, we'll bring you a daily guide to the key stories, newspaper headlines and quotes from the campaign trail.
Day in a nutshell
Prime Minister David Cameron promised to create two million more jobs in the next Parliament if the Conservatives are re-elected
Labour highlighted its pledge to offer rate cuts for small businesses
Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg made a manifesto commitment to spend an extra £3.5bn over six years on mental health services
Plaid Cymru launched its manifesto with a call to "unleash the economic potential of Wales" and secure £1.2bn in extra annual funding
Nigel Farage, the UKIP leader, accused Mr Cameron of being "wilfully dishonest", external over his pledge to reduce immigration to the "tens of thousands"
SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon insisted the renewal of Trident remained a "red line" issue for the SNP in any formal post-election deal with Labour
Details of Thursday's seven-way TV debate were confirmed by ITV. Each leader will get an uninterrupted one-minute answer to each question, with up to 18 minutes of debate on each question. David Cameron will be speaking last; Natalie Bennett of the Greens will go first.
One minute round-up
Tuesday's newspaper headlines
The Times writes that left-wing Labour MPs, external could challenge the party's first Queen's Speech, possibly joining forces with the Scottish National Party to oppose cuts. The piece is based on an interview John McDonnell, leader of the Socialist Campaign Group, gave to the New Statesman, external.
The FT writes that Nick Clegg, external, the Lib Dem leader, is preparing to exact a "steep price" to allow to the Conservatives to hold a referendum on British membership of the EU in the event of a hung parliament.
The Guardian leads with David Cameron's claims yesterday , externalthat families will face a £3,000 tax rise if Labour are elected, with the newspaper saying the charge was "undermined" by the Institute for Fiscal Studies.
The Telegraph says Ed Miliband's credibility on the economy "suffered a new blow" after business leaders raised concerns over the use of their quotes in a party advert.
What does it feel like to have no chance of winning?
Many candidates at the election stand little to no chance of winning. So why do they do bother? Tom Moseley has been finding out.
Key quotes
"The tone was absolutely right because this election is a choice."
David Cameron questioned about his criticism of Ed Miliband outside 10 Downing Street
"The four Westminster leaders offer us nothing more than further swingeing cuts to our public services and no commitment to securing an economic recovery for all."
Leanne Wood, Plaid Cymru leader, launching her party's manifesto
"Under no circumstances would we ever vote for the renewal of Trident or the spending of money on the renewal of Trident. In terms of any formal arrangement with Labour, I've made clear and I can't make clearer Trident is a red line."
SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon on BBC Radio Scotland
"I learned that the name's Liberal Democrats instead of Cats..."
Joey Essex on meeting Nick Clegg
Reality checks of the day
The BBC's Reality Check team looked a variety of political claims.
George Osborne said living standards were rising, just days after Ed Miliband said they were falling. Who is right?
Plaid Cymru, the Welsh nationalist party, demanded the same levels of funding per head as Scotland. How far behind is Wales?
David Cameron said the coalition had created 1,000 jobs a day since it took office in 2010, a total of 1.9 million jobs. Is this correct?
Mr Cameron also said there were now far fewer people waiting more than a year for an operation than in the early days of the coalition. Is this true?
Queen's head
And BBC's StyleWatch asked the burning question of the day - what do you think of David Cameron's cufflinks?